TULSA, Okla. — A Tulsa County man has been charged with first-degree rape in connection to an attack in 2003.
Investigators say Jerry Tyrone LeBlanc raped a mentally disabled woman. However, LeBlanc is no longer able to stand trial.
He died several months ago.
LeBlanc was connected to the crime after a nearly 20-year-old rape kit was tested. He died in February, but police say they didn’t know LeBlanc had died when they filed charges against him.
Court documents say he is accused of raping an 18-year-old with the mental capacity of a five-year-old. Lieutenant Darin Ehrenreich said the case eventually went inactive because the detective wasn’t able to track a suspect.
While LeBlanc did not serve time for this crime, he did spend five years in prison for another rape. That DNA was then tested, leading to this connection.
“When we went to serve that arrest warrant, he learned he has since passed away,” said Lt. Ehrenreich.
Danielle Tudor, a rape survivor herself, explains how it feels to not get justice.
“It’s got to be crushing for the victim who does not get to see justice in her case, especially if she had that rape kit done,” said Tudor.
Tudor says the man that raped her admitted to it after the statute of limitations expired, so charges couldn’t be filed.
“This probably isn’t the last case we are going to see that, there is a lot of regret that we did not do something at the time of the crime,” said Tudor.
But, it’s a possibility that Tudor is trying to prevent. She now sits on the Governor’s Task Force, making sure that Oklahoma’s rape kits are tested to avoid cases like this one.
Lt. Ehrenreich says the department has tested a third of all rape kits that were untested, and they are hoping to bring justice to victims.